Rangers Reporthttp://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/
A Waterloo Region Record blog on the Kitchener Rangersen-US2018-03-19T08:18:09-04:00

Rangers set to clash with Storm in first roundhttp://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/rangers-set-to-clash-with-storm-in-first-round.html
The Ontario Hockey League's Highway 7 rivalry is about to add another chapter. The Kitchener Rangers and Guelph Storm will clash in one of four western conference quarter-finals. The best-of-seven series begins Friday at the Aud at 7:30 p.m. Full story Kitchener Rangers (2) vs. Guelph Storm (7) Game 1:...<p>The Ontario Hockey League&#39;s Highway 7 rivalry is about to add another chapter.</p>
<p>The Kitchener Rangers and Guelph Storm will clash in one of four western conference quarter-finals. The best-of-seven series begins Friday at the Aud at 7:30 p.m.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8336242-rangers-to-open-playoffs-against-guelph/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Full story</a></p>
<p><strong>Kitchener&#0160;Rangers (2) vs. Guelph Storm (7)</strong><strong><br /><br /> </strong>Game 1: Fri., March 23 at Kitchener at 7:30 p.m.<br /> Game 2: Sun., March 25 at Kitchener at 7 p.m.<br /> Game 3: Tues., March 27 at Guelph at 7 p.m.<br /> Game 4: Wed., March 28 at Guelph at 7 p.m.<br /> Game 5: Fri., March 30 at Kitchener at 7:30 p.m.<br /> Game 6: Sun.,&#0160;April&#0160;1 at Guelph at 2 p.m.<br /> Game 7: Tues., April 3 at Kitchener at 7 p.m.</p>TheRecord2018-03-19T08:18:09-04:00Rangers limp into playoffshttp://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/rangers-limp-into-playoffs.html
Michael Vukojevic hesitated before celebrating. The Kitchener Rangers defenceman had just fired the puck through traffic toward Guelph Storm keeper Anthony Popovich and the red goal light was flashing. It appeared as though the 16-year-old had just scored his first Ontario Hockey League marker. But first line centre Logan Brown...<p><a class="asset-img-link" href="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01bb09fc2e2d970d-pi"><img alt="16MAR18RangersA0014" class="asset asset-image at-xid-6a00d8341c465d53ef01bb09fc2e2d970d img-responsive" src="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01bb09fc2e2d970d-500wi" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="16MAR18RangersA0014" /></a><br />Michael Vukojevic hesitated before celebrating.</p>
<p>The Kitchener Rangers defenceman had just fired the puck through traffic toward Guelph Storm keeper Anthony Popovich and the red goal light was flashing.</p>
<p>It appeared as though the 16-year-old had just scored his first Ontario Hockey League marker.</p>
<p>But first line centre Logan Brown was in the path of the puck.</p>
<p>&quot;I thought maybe he touched it as it was going in or got a stick on it,&quot; said Vukojevic.</p>
<p>The mystery ended quickly when Brown skated over to congratulate the rookie, who broke a 23-game goalless skid in the team&#39;s final regular season contest.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8334328-rangers-drop-final-game-shift-focus-to-playoffs/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Full story</a></p>TheRecord2018-03-17T09:40:17-04:00Guelph 6, Kitchener 3http://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/guelph-at-kitchener.html
PREGAME Rangers: 43-20-3-1, second in western conference Storm: 29-28-5-4, sixth in western conference Head to head: Kitchener leads 5-1-1-0 Game-time: 7:30 p.m. The skinny: Kitchener has lost two straight games but has picked up a point in each one by making it to overtime against Guelph and a shootout versus...<p><strong>PREGAME</strong></p>
<p><strong>Rangers:</strong> 43-20-3-1, second in western conference</p>
<p><strong>Storm:</strong> 29-28-5-4, sixth in western conference</p>
<p><strong>Head to head:</strong> Kitchener leads 5-1-1-0</p>
<p><strong>Game-time:</strong> 7:30 p.m.</p>
<p><strong>The skinny:</strong> Kitchener has lost two straight games but has picked up a point in each one by making it to overtime against Guelph and a shootout versus Sarnia. The team has looked good in the losses which is a good sign. Guelph is fighting to avoid the dreaded eighth spot in the west and the first round playoff date against the Soo that comes with it.</p>
<p><strong>Keep an eye on:</strong> Rangers F Adam Liska sure likes to play Guelph and has eight points in seven games against the Storm. That’s about a quarter of the points he’s scored all season.</p>
<p><strong>Kitchener&quot;</strong></p>
<p>Givani Smith-Logan Brown-Kole Sherwood<br /> Adam Liska-Rickard Hugg-Jonathan Yantsis<br />Nick McHugh-Riley Damiani-Greg Meireles<br /> Michael Petizian-Eric Guest-Connor Bunnaman<br /> <br /> Joseph Garreffa-Michael Vukojevic<br /> Giovanni Vallati-Austin McEneny<br /> Kyle Gentles-Jack York</p>
<p>Mario Culina (15-10-2-1) starts.</p>
<p><strong>Guelph:</strong></p>
<p>Alexey Toropchenko-Liam Hawel-Isaac Ratcliffe<br />James McEwan-Cam Hillis-Zach Poirier<br />Mason Primeau-Barret Kirwin-Cedric Ralph<br />Keegan Stevenson-X-X</p>
<p>Garrett McFadden-Ryan Merkley<br />Dmitri Samorukov-Mark Shoemaker<br />Mark Woolley-Owen Lalonde</p>
<p>Anthony Popovich (28-21-4-3) starts.</p>
<p><a href="http://ontariohockeyleague.com/gamecentre/23044/boxscore" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Game summary</a></p>
<p><strong>Brownie points:</strong></p>
<p>- The OHL <a href="http://ontariohockeyleague.com/article/ohl-announces-2017-18-coaches-poll-winners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">coaches poll</a> came out yesterday and Adam Mascherin was rated first in the western conference for best shot, second for most dangerous in the goal area and second for hardest shot. Connor Bunnaman was third in best on faceoffs while Connor Hall was third in best defensive defenceman.<br /><br />- Glaring omissions from this seat included Riley Damiani among best defensive forwards and goalie Mario Culina for most improved.<br /><br />- Just a rest for D Logan Stanley and F Adam Mascherin before the playoffs start. <br /> <br /> - Fans saw a lot of the Liska-Hugg-Yantsis line. That unit will be the team’s fourth trio in the playoffs.<br /> <br /> - 50/50 draw was an astounding $24,440. A nice chunk of cheddar. I did not win.<br /> <br /> - No penalties for either club through the first two and a half periods then two awarded to Kitchener in a span of 20 seconds, giving the Storm a five-on-three for 1:40. And Guelph made good to go up 5-3.<br /> <br /> - Three consecutive losses to end the season isn’t exactly the way you want to go into the playoffs. That said, the Rangers played great in Guelph and in Sarnia before tonight’s affair.<br /> <br /> - Just 13 shots over the last two periods for the Rangers.<br /> <br /> - We’ve seen more inspiring games. But it was game 68 and rather meaningless for the home side.<br /> <br /><strong> JB’s top three Rangers:</strong> Joseph Garreffa, Greg Meireles, Michael Vukojevic</p>TheRecord2018-03-16T09:58:51-04:00Rangers-Sting rivalry heats uphttp://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/rangers-sting-rivalry-heats-up.html
It was a meaningless game with no bearing in the standings. But Wednesday's clash between the Kitchener Rangers and Sarnia Sting had all the feel of a playoff affair. The Ontario Hockey League western conference foes went toe-to-toe at the Progressive Auto Sales Arena, taking a 3-3 tie all the...<p><a class="asset-img-link" href="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01b8d2e2a9f7970c-pi" style="float: right;"><img alt="19JUL13 OHL team Logos 141" class="asset asset-image at-xid-6a00d8341c465d53ef01b8d2e2a9f7970c img-responsive" src="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01b8d2e2a9f7970c-320wi" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px 5px;" title="19JUL13 OHL team Logos 141" /></a>It was a meaningless game with no bearing in the standings.</p>
<p>But Wednesday&#39;s clash between the Kitchener Rangers and Sarnia Sting had all the feel of a playoff affair.</p>
<p>The Ontario Hockey League western conference foes went toe-to-toe at the Progressive Auto Sales Arena, taking a 3-3 tie all the way to a shootout before Sarnia forward Jordan Ernst went high on Rangers goalie Mario Culina to end the emotional contest.</p>
<p>The result was really secondary.</p>
<p>This one was all about setting a tone since the third seeded Sting and second place Rangers seem to be on a collision course in the playoffs, which begin next week.</p>
<p>&quot;You can see that they don&#39;t like each other,&quot; said Sarnia coach Derian Hatcher. &quot;The emotions are riled up to say the least.&quot;</p>
<p><a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8329542-rangers-sting-rivalry-heats-up-in-shootout-loss/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Full story</a></p>TheRecord2018-03-15T08:49:09-04:00Sarnia 4, Kitchener 3 (SO)http://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/kitchener-at-sarnia.html
PREGAME Rangers: 43-20-2-0, second in western conference Sting: 44-16-4-1, third in western conference Head to head: Kitchener leads 3-0 Game-time: 7:05 p.m. The skinny: Sarnia has lost four of its past eight games and hasn’t played since Saturday so the Sting should be well rested. Kitchener had dropped two of...<p><strong>PREGAME</strong></p>
<p><strong>Rangers:</strong> 43-20-2-0, second in western conference</p>
<p><strong>Sting:</strong> 44-16-4-1, third in western conference</p>
<p><strong>Head to head:</strong> Kitchener leads 3-0</p>
<p><strong>Game-time:</strong> 7:05 p.m.</p>
<p><strong>The skinny:</strong> Sarnia has lost four of its past eight games and hasn’t played since Saturday so the Sting should be well rested. Kitchener had dropped two of its past three tilts and is playing its second game in as many nights. If all the favourites win their first playoff round these two teams will meet in the conference semis.</p>
<p><strong>Keep an eye on:</strong> Rangers F Rickard Hugg only has six goals this season but two of them have come against the Sarnia Sting.</p>
<p><strong>Additional reading:</strong></p>
<p><a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8326688-kitchener-rangers-still-waiting-on-playoff-opponent/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Rangers still waiting on playoff opponent</a><br /><a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8326877-kitchener-rangers-blow-three-goal-lead-in-ot-loss-to-guelph-storm/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Guelph gets payback against Kitchener</a></p>
<p><strong>Kitchener:</strong></p>
<p>Givani Smith-Logan Brown-Kole Sherwood<br /> Connor Bunnaman-Joseph Garreffa-Adam Mascherin<br /> Nick McHugh-Riley Damiani-Greg Meireles<br /> Adam Liska-Rickard Hugg-Jonathan Yantsis</p>
<p>Logan Stanley-Michael Vukojevic<br /> Giovanni Vallati-Austin McEneny<br /> Kyle Gentles-Jack York</p>
<p>Mario Culina (15-10-2-0) starts.</p>
<p><strong>Sarnia:</strong></p>
<p>Jordan Ernst-Jamieson Rees-Brayden Guy<br />Hugo Leftvenius-Drake Rymsha-Anthony Salinitri<br />Franco Sproviero-Adam Ruzicka-Jordan Kyrou<br />Michael Pezzetta-Ryan McGregor-Sean Josling<br /><br />Kelton Hatcher-Theo Calves<br />Cam Dineen-Mitch Eliot<br />Connor Schlichting-Nick Grima<br /><br />Justin Fazio (35-11-3-0) starts.</p>
<p><a href="http://ontariohockeyleague.com/gamecentre/23037/boxscore" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Game summary</a></p>
<p><strong>Brownie points:</strong></p>
<p>- Rangers D Connor Hall is out for the second straight game after aggravating his shoulder against Saginaw on the weekend. The team says they are in a “wait and see” mode with regards to his return. I was told that he hasn’t decided to shut it down for the season - as of yet - so that’s good news.</p>
<p>- Lots of physical stuff going on behind the play and after the whistle in this one. Sarnia’s Drake Rymsha was rocked by Logan Stanley and then went after him in the first. Not sure that’s the fight you want to pick.<br /> <br /> - Riley Damiani roofed the puck top corner on Sarnia goalie Justin Fazio after the first period ended. That didn’t go over well with the Sting.<br /> <br /> - A great weekday crowd for the second night in a row. The Sleeman Centre was packed Tuesday and Sarnia (ites?) came out in full force tonight. <br /> <br /> - The Progressive Auto Sales Arena might just be on my all-cold OHL rinks team. Sleeman Centre and Bud Gardens are already there.<br /> <br /> - Both teams had too many men on the ice at least once and got away with it. Call it a wash.<br /> <br /> - Unlike the last couple of meetings against the Sting, the Rangers had a hard time containing Sarnia’s top line. Jordan Kyrou is a pleasure to watch and is just on another level.<br /> <br /> - The fatigue started to show for the Rangers in the second half of the second period which is understandable having played last night. So credit the club for taking the game all the way to a shootout.<br /> <br /> - Some fantastic end to end action to end the second frame with Anthony Salinitri hitting the crossbar and Greg Meireles with a golden chance for the Rangers.<br /> <br /> - Kole Sherwood scored his 30<sup>th</sup> of the season and celebrated in style by twirling his stick and then holstering it by his side. <br /> <br /> - Sarnia’s Kelton Hatcher was bloodied after being checked into the end boards by Sherwood. No call on the play. Sting coach Derian Hatcher was not happy about it either.<br /> <br /> - Givani Smith sure was enemy No. 1 for the Sting. He was a source of frustration for Sarnia all game.<br /><br />- All hockey fans are hoping this is a second round playoff match-up.<br /> <br /> <strong>JB’s top three Rangers:</strong> Mario Culina, Logan Stanley, Kyle Gentles</p>TheRecord2018-03-14T09:21:04-04:00Rangers waiting on playoff opponenthttp://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/rangers-waiting-on-playoff-opponent.html
The Kitchener Rangers know they'll open the playoffs on home ice. That is a certainty. Exactly who will be standing across the ice for Game 1 of their Ontario Hockey League western conference quarter-final at the Aud remains a mystery. The regular season wraps up this weekend but three teams...<p>The Kitchener Rangers know they&#39;ll open the playoffs on home ice. That is a certainty.</p>
<p>Exactly who will be standing across the ice for Game 1 of their Ontario Hockey League western conference quarter-final at the Aud remains a mystery.</p>
<p>The regular season wraps up this weekend but three teams are still in the mix as potential first-round opponents — the Windsor Spitfires, Saginaw Spirit and Guelph Storm, who took on the Rangers Tuesday night at the Sleeman Centre.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8326688-kitchener-rangers-still-waiting-on-playoff-opponent/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Full story</a></p>TheRecord2018-03-14T09:14:21-04:00Guelph gets revenge on Rangershttp://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/guelph-gets-revenge-on-rangers.html
It was a shot of confidence that was long overdue for the Guelph Storm. "It's a big two points," said Guelph forward Isaac Ratcliffe, after Tuesday night's come from behind 4-3 overtime victory against the Kitchener Rangers. "We were on a big slide. Once we realize we can beat a...<p>It was a shot of confidence that was long overdue for the Guelph Storm.</p>
<p>&quot;It&#39;s a big two points,&quot; said Guelph forward Isaac Ratcliffe, after Tuesday night&#39;s come from behind 4-3 overtime victory against the Kitchener Rangers.</p>
<p>&quot;We were on a big slide. Once we realize we can beat a great team like Kitchener, then we can beat anyone.&quot;</p>
<p>The Storm came into their final regular season home game at the Sleeman Centre with just one victory in their past 13 games.</p>
<p>And it was looking grim early on.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8326877-kitchener-rangers-blow-three-goal-lead-in-ot-loss-to-guelph-storm/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Full story</a></p>TheRecord2018-03-14T09:11:25-04:00Guelph 4, Kitchener 3 (OT)http://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/kitchener-at-guelph.html
PREGAME Rangers: 43-20-2-0, second in the western conference Storm: 28-28-5-4, eighth in the western conference Head to head: Kitchener leads 5-1 Game-time: 7 p.m. The skinny: Kitchener has won three of its past four games and that includes an incredible comeback against Guelph that saw the Rangers score twice with...<p><strong>PREGAME</strong></p>
<p><strong>Rangers:</strong> 43-20-2-0, second in the western conference</p>
<p><strong>Storm:</strong> 28-28-5-4, eighth in the western conference</p>
<p><strong>Head to head:</strong> Kitchener leads 5-1</p>
<p><strong>Game-time:</strong> 7 p.m.</p>
<p><strong>The skinny:</strong> Kitchener has won three of its past four games and that includes an incredible comeback against Guelph that saw the Rangers score twice with an empty net in the final two minutes of action and then win in overtime. Guelph has one win in its past 13 games and is still jockeying for playoff position in the west.</p>
<p><strong>Keep an eye on:</strong> Adam Mascherin and linemate Joseph Garreffa have been a deadly duo for the Rangers. Both players have nine points against Guelph this season.</p>
<p><strong>Additional reading:</strong> <a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8324508-the-ohl-21-awards-season/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The OHL 21: Awards season</a></p>
<p><strong>Kitchener:</strong></p>
<p>Givani Smith-Logan Brown-Kole Sherwood<br /> Connor Bunnaman-Joseph Garreffa-Adam Mascherin<br /> Nick McHugh-Riley Damiani-Greg Meireles<br /> Adam Liska-Rickard Hugg-Jonathan Yantsis<br /><br /> Logan Stanley-Michael Vukojevic<br />Giovanni Vallati-Austin McEneny<br /> Kyle Gentles-Jack York</p>
<p>Luke Richardson (23-11-1-0) starts.</p>
<p><strong>Guelph:</strong></p>
<p>Isaac Ratcliffe-Cam Hillis-Nate Schnarr <br />Cedric Ralph-Liam Hawel-Alex Toropchenko <br />James McEwan-Barret Kirwin-Zach Poirier <br />Keegan Stevenson-Mason Primeau <br /><br />Garrett McFadden-Ryan Merkley <br />Dmitri Samorukov-Owen Lalonde <br />Mark Woolley-Mark Shoemaker <br /><br />Anthony Popovich (27-21-4-3) starts.</p>
<p><a href="http://ontariohockeyleague.com/gamecentre/23033/boxscore" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Game summary</a></p>
<p><strong>Brownie points:<br /><br /></strong>- The Logans are back. Stanley after missing a game with a lower body injury and Brown after missing four with an injury. D Connor Hall remains out after leaving Sunday&#39;s game against Saginaw.<br /><br />- You can&#39;t accuse the Rangers of mailing it in. Quite the &quot;fourth&quot; line Tuesday.<br /><br />- Final home game for the Storm so the team honoured veterans Mark Shoemaker, Garrett McFadden and James McEwan before puck drop. Always a nice touch.<br /><br />- Riley Damiani missed three games with an illness and didn’t look quite like himself since his return in the past two tilts. It was a different story in Guelph. He was buzzing and back to being an impact on the ice. A great sign with the playoffs looming.<br /> <br /> - It was a rough return for Guelph rookie Cam Hillis, who was back after missing seven games. He was rocked by Logan Stanley and was manhandled by Michael Vukojevic twice, all in the first period.<br /> <br /> - Another reason why I love junior hockey – an animated donut and coffee shown on the scoreboard in a faux race got fans cheering louder than any play on the ice. <br /> <br /> - Kitchener came to play in the first and fired 18 shots on net. The Rangers had second locked up a long time ago but continue to play hard. It was one of the more dominating periods I’ve seen of late.</p>
<p>- Rangers goalie Luke Richardson took a bump when Liam Hawel crashed into him on a break (Hawel got called for goalie interference) but Richardson was OK.<br /> <br /> - Kitchener’s third unit is really starting to find its legs. Nick McHugh especially looks reborn on that line with Damiani and Meireles. Could be a potential scoring line next season.<br /> <br /> - Guelph had a 5-on-3 for 18 seconds in the third period but Kitchener’s PK was perfect all game and stopped all four Storm PPs.<br /> <br /> - Not sure what was going on with the goal judge but the red lights kept going on and off throughout the third behind Storm goalie Anthony Popovich.<br /> <br /> - Speaking of Poppy, if it wasn’t for him, this might have been a blowout. <br /><br />- The Storm scored four unanswered goals to remind the Rangers that they won&#39;t be a pushover if they meet in the playoffs.</p>
<p><strong>JB’s top three Rangers:</strong> Riley Damiani, Greg Meireles, Michael Vukojevic</p>TheRecord2018-03-13T00:39:00-04:00The OHL 21: Awards seasonhttp://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/the-ohl-21-awards-season.html
Aaron Luchuk will be hoisting hardware. At least, he would be if I was in charge of the Ontario Hockey League year-end awards. The Barrie Colts forward gets the nod, in this space, as the league's most outstanding player and top overager. The 20-year-old has 47 goals and 63 assists...<p><a class="asset-img-link" href="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01bb09faf975970d-pi"><img alt="Luchuk_TW_CHL_ (4)" class="asset asset-image at-xid-6a00d8341c465d53ef01bb09faf975970d img-responsive" src="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01bb09faf975970d-500wi" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Luchuk_TW_CHL_ (4)" /></a><br />Aaron Luchuk will be hoisting hardware.</p>
<p>At least, he would be if I was in charge of the Ontario Hockey League year-end awards.</p>
<p>The Barrie Colts forward gets the nod, in this space, as the league&#39;s most outstanding player and top overager.</p>
<p>The 20-year-old has 47 goals and 63 assists through 65 games, and leads the OHL scoring race with three games to go in the season.</p>
<p>His transition from Windsor to Barrie has been seamless and he has helped keep the Colts in contention for an East crown.</p>
<p>The double dip in awards is well deserved. But there are more finalists and winners to name.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8324508-the-ohl-21-awards-season/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Full story</a></p>TheRecord2018-03-12T21:38:43-04:00Mascherin joins 40-goal clubhttp://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/mascherin-joins-40-goal-club.html
Picking your favourite goal is like choosing your favourite child. It's just tough to single one out. But, when put to the task, Adam Mascherin conceded that his 40th of the season — scored in Kitchener's 3-2 win over Saginaw Sunday afternoon — was probably the best. "This one is...<p><a class="asset-img-link" href="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01bb09fac781970d-pi"><img alt="Rangers3" class="asset asset-image at-xid-6a00d8341c465d53ef01bb09fac781970d img-responsive" src="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01bb09fac781970d-500wi" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Rangers3" /></a><br />Picking your favourite goal is like choosing your favourite child. It&#39;s just tough to single one out.</p>
<p>But, when put to the task, Adam Mascherin conceded that his 40th of the season — scored in Kitchener&#39;s 3-2 win over Saginaw Sunday afternoon — was probably the best.</p>
<p>&quot;This one is the coolest one for me,&quot; said the Florida Panthers draft pick.</p>
<p>And it was a typical Mascherin goal.</p>
<p>The winger sped down ice and fired a wicked wrist shot from just inside the blue line over the shoulder of Spirit goalie Cameron Lamour.</p>
<p>The second period bullet, scored 64 seconds after teammate Austin McEneny tallied, put the home side up 2-1.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8322016-mascherin-scores-40th-in-rangers-win-over-saginaw/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Full story</a></p>TheRecord2018-03-12T09:15:34-04:00Kitchener 3, Saginaw 2http://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/saginaw-at-kitchener.html
PREGAME Rangers: 42-20-2-0, second in western conference Spirit: 29-27-8-0, tied for sixth in western conference Head to head: Kitchener leads 3-0 Game-time: 2 p.m. The skinny: Saginaw saw its modest two-game winning streak snapped in a 5-0 loss to Owen Sound last night and is playing its third game in...<p><strong>PREGAME</strong></p>
<p><strong>Rangers:</strong> 42-20-2-0, second in western conference</p>
<p><strong>Spirit:</strong> 29-27-8-0, tied for sixth in western conference</p>
<p><strong>Head to head:</strong> Kitchener leads 3-0</p>
<p><strong>Game-time:</strong> 2 p.m.</p>
<p><strong>The skinny:</strong> Saginaw saw its modest two-game winning streak snapped in a 5-0 loss to Owen Sound last night and is playing its third game in three days. The Spirit are 8-14-5-0 since Jan. 5. Kitchener is all set to finish second in the west and is coming off a tight 4-3 loss to the mighty Soo Greyhounds. But after Hamilton’s loss to Niagara last night the Rangers are now just two points back of the Bulldogs for third overall in the OHL with a game in hand.</p>
<p><strong>Keep an eye on:</strong> Rangers F Adam Mascherin is one tally shy of the 40-goal mark and has nine points in his past four games.</p>
<p><strong>Additional reading:</strong></p>
<p><a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8320033-kitchener-rangers-givani-smith-avoids-suspension/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Smith avoids suspension</a></p>
<p><a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8320216-kitchener-rangers-rally-falls-short-against-soo-greyhounds/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Rangers’ rally comes up short against Soo</a></p>
<p><strong>Kitchener:</strong></p>
<p>Givani Smith-Rickard Hugg-Kole Sherwood<br /> Connor Bunnaman-Joseph Garreffa-Adam Mascherin<br /> Nick McHugh-Riley Damiani-Greg Meireles<br /> Adam Liska-Michael Petizian-Jonathan Yantsis</p>
<p>Connor Hall-Austin McEneny<br /> Michael Vukojevic-Kyle Gentles<br /> Giovanni Vallati-Jack York</p>
<p>Luke Richardson (22-11-1-0) starts.</p>
<p><strong>Saginaw:</strong></p>
<p>Blade Jenkins-Damien Giroux-Mason Kohn<br />Cole Coskey-Max Grondin-Jake Goldowski<br />Nicholas Porco-D.J. Busdeker-Ryan Stepien<br />Danny Katic-Aidan Prueter-Ben Badalamenti<br /><br />Keaton Middleton-Reilly Webb<br />Marcus Crawford-Hayden Davis<br />Duncan Penman-Caleb Everett</p>
<p>Cameron Lamour (5-5-1-0) starts.</p>
<p><a href="http://ontariohockeyleague.com/gamecentre/23027/boxscore" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Game summary</a></p>
<p><strong>Brownie points:</strong><br /> <br /> - Owen Sound is no longer in the mix for seventh place in the west leaving Windsor, Saginaw and Guelph as possible first round opponents for Kitchener.<br /><br />- Givani Smith is back in the lineup after missing one game while D Logan Stanley is out with a lower body injury. It isn&#39;t considered serious and he&#39;s expected to return later this week.</p>
<p>- A sneaky play by Adam Mascherin in the first saw him leave the penalty box and steal the puck off a Spirit defender at the point and then takeoff on a partial break. He didn&#39;t score but it sure surprised the Spirit.<br /> <br /> - It was déjà-vu on the first two Rangers goals by Austin McEneny and Mascherin – both from the left side and high blocker side on Cameron Lamour. Joseph Garreffa’s 12<sup>th</sup> was also scored on a wrister.<br /> <br /> - Give Mascherin 40 on the year. First Ranger to do that since Tobias Rieder in 2011-12, who had 42.<br /> <br /> - D Connor Hall left the game in the first period and did not return. The veteran has already missed time this season with a shoulder injury, one that will require off-season surgery. Coach Jay McKee said Hall didn&#39;t seem too bad after the game and that they&#39;ll know more after a doctor takes a look.<br /> <br /> - Protecting a lead is one thing but the Rangers were outshot 19-4 in the third. Saginaw doesn&#39;t have the star power of the Rangers but they sure work hard.<br /> <br /> - Former Rangers F Mason Kohn got the visitors back in it on the PP in the third period. He always seems to scored against his ex-club.<br /><br />- Kitchener D Michael Vukojevic was also JB star worthy. He played 27 minutes today. Goalie Luke Richardson was also strong.<br /><br />- Draws 39-27 Rangers. Garreffa 10/15, Bunnaman 8/10, Petizian/Meireles 4/6.</p>
<p><strong>JB’s top three Rangers:</strong> Austin McEneny, Adam Mascherin, Giovanni Vallati</p>TheRecord2018-03-11T08:11:31-04:00Rangers' rally falls shorthttp://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/rangers-rally-falls-short.html
It's a staggering statistic. The Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds were 36-0 when leading after two periods heading into Friday's tilt against the Kitchener Rangers at the Aud. So when the Blueshirts looked up at the scoreboard and saw a 3-1 score staring back after 40 minutes, it wasn't looking good....<p><a class="asset-img-link" href="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01bb09fa4ff6970d-pi"><img alt="Rangers-Greyhounds 1" class="asset asset-image at-xid-6a00d8341c465d53ef01bb09fa4ff6970d img-responsive" src="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01bb09fa4ff6970d-500wi" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Rangers-Greyhounds 1" /></a><br />It&#39;s a staggering statistic.</p>
<p>The Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds were 36-0 when leading after two periods heading into Friday&#39;s tilt against the Kitchener Rangers at the Aud.</p>
<p>So when the Blueshirts looked up at the scoreboard and saw a 3-1 score staring back after 40 minutes, it wasn&#39;t looking good.</p>
<p>But the home side didn&#39;t back down.</p>
<p>Two power play goals had the western conference rivals even before Waterloo native Boris Katchouk blew past two Rangers defencemen and scored his 41st marker of the campaign for a 4-3 &#39;Hounds win.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8320216-kitchener-rangers-rally-falls-short-against-soo-greyhounds/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Full story</a></p>TheRecord2018-03-10T09:43:23-05:00Smith avoids suspensionhttp://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/smith-avoids-suspension.html
Givani Smith's name has been cleared. The Kitchener Rangers forward spent the past three days in limbo waiting to see if the Ontario Hockey League was going to punish him for abuse of an official after a collision with a linesman in Tuesday's win over Sarnia. But, after reviewing the...<p><a class="asset-img-link" href="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01bb09fa4fe3970d-pi" style="float: right;"><img alt="Rangers3" class="asset asset-image at-xid-6a00d8341c465d53ef01bb09fa4fe3970d img-responsive" src="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01bb09fa4fe3970d-320wi" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px 5px;" title="Rangers3" /></a>Givani Smith&#39;s name has been cleared.</p>
<p>The Kitchener Rangers forward spent the past three days in limbo waiting to see if the Ontario Hockey League was going to punish him for abuse of an official after a collision with a linesman in Tuesday&#39;s win over Sarnia.</p>
<p>But, after reviewing the play and written statements from those involved, the league concluded that Smith did nothing wrong and did not issue a suspension.</p>
<p>&quot;The bottom line is that the official didn&#39;t feel Smith&#39;s actions warranted physical abuse of an official,&quot; said OHL vice president Ted Baker. &quot;It was more the position of the linesman. He recognized that he was off balance and on his toes.&quot;</p>
<p><a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8320033-rangers-smith-avoids-suspension/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Full story</a></p>TheRecord2018-03-09T20:25:17-05:00Sault Ste. Marie 4, Kitchener 3http://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/sault-ste-marie-at-kitchener.html
PREGAME Rangers: 42-19-2-0, second in western conference Greyhounds: 52-7-2-2, first in western conference Head to head: Sault Ste. Marie leads 3-0. Game-time: 7:30 p.m. The skinny: Sault Ste. Marie has barely broken a sweat this season. But one plus is that the rested Rangers might catch the ‘Hounds tired as...<p><strong>PREGAME</strong></p>
<p><strong>Rangers:</strong> 42-19-2-0, second in western conference</p>
<p><strong>Greyhounds:</strong> 52-7-2-2, first in western conference</p>
<p><strong>Head to head:</strong> Sault Ste. Marie leads 3-0.</p>
<p><strong>Game-time:</strong> 7:30 p.m.</p>
<p><strong>The skinny:</strong> Sault Ste. Marie has barely broken a sweat this season. But one plus is that the rested Rangers might catch the ‘Hounds tired as the Soo had to play last night and suffered a rare loss to Windsor. Kitchener handled Sarnia (the OHL’s second best team) 5-2 on Tuesday and has won two straight.</p>
<p><strong>Keep an eye on:</strong> F Morgan Frost comes into the Aud on a nine game point scoring streak. The OHL’s third leading scorer has six goals and nine assists in that span.</p>
<p><strong>Additional reading: </strong><a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8317809-division-clinched-but-rangers-still-have-work-to-do/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Rangers&#39; pre-playoff to-do list</a></p>
<p><strong>Kitchener:</strong></p>
<p>Rickard Hugg-Greg Meireles-Kole Sherwood<br />Connor Bunnaman-Joseph Garreffa-Adam Mascherin<br /> Nick McHugh-Riley Damiani-Adam Liska<br />Eric Guest-Michael Petizian-Jonathan Yantsis</p>
<p>Connor Hall-Logan Stanley<br />Michael Vukojevic-Austin McEneny<br /> Giovanni Vallati-Kyle Gentles</p>
<p>Mario Culina (15-9-2-0) starts.</p>
<p><strong>Sault Ste. Marie:</strong></p>
<p>Boris Katchouk-Morgan Frost-Ryan Roth<br />Jack Kopacka-Barrett Hayton-Taylor Raddysh<br />Keeghan Howdeshell-Hayden Verbeek-Tim Gettinger<br />Holden Wale-Joe Carroll-Cole MacKay<br /><br />Noah Carroll-Mac Hollowell<br />Rasmus Sandin-Conor Timmins<br />Jacob LeGuerrier-Jordan Sambrook<br /><br />Matthew Villalta (39-5-1-1) starts.</p>
<p><a href="http://ontariohockeyleague.com/gamecentre/23016/boxscore" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Game summary</a></p>
<p><strong>Brownie points:</strong></p>
<p>- As of Thursday night, the OHL had not announced a suspension for Rangers F Givani Smith after his brush with an official in Tuesday&#39;s game against Sarnia. <strong>UPDATE:</strong> After reviewing the play, the OHL had decided not to issue a suspension to Smith. Though, he was sick Friday and did not play.<br /><br />- Centre Riley Damiani is back after missing the past three with an illness. Logan Brown sits out his third consecutive clash. Coach Jay McKee says Brown could play if he had to but that he wants to make sure the first line centre is 100 per cent healthy for the playoffs.<br /><br />- The Soo scored two goals in 58 seconds in the first period. <br /> <br /> - Not to be outdone, Kitchener scored two power play markers in 1:01 in the third period.</p>
<p>- Not exactly a hot take but boy oh boy, is the Soo a fast and dominating squad. They are a fun team to watch, that’s for sure.<br /> <br /> - Kitchener fell behind 3-0 but didn’t fold. I’d love to see the ice time for the Garreffa line and for Kole Sherwood. It felt like they didn’t get off the ice in the final two frames.<br /> <br /> - Mario Culina made 39 saves. He was a busy man.<br /> <br /> - Didn’t see as much Riley Damiani in the third. It’s going to take him a few games to get back up to snuff.</p>
<p>- Hometown boy Boris Katchouk burns the hometown team with two goals including the winner.<br /> <br /> - Joey G 6-for-9 and Connor Bunnaman 9-for-14 on the dot, as team it was advantage Rangers 30-26.<br /><br />- Logan Stanley took a puck off the leg and was visibly in pain but hats off for finishing the game strong.<br /> <br /> <strong>JB’s top three Rangers:</strong> Adam Mascherin, Joseph Garreffa, Logan Stanley</p>TheRecord2018-03-09T00:53:00-05:00Division clinched, but still work to dohttp://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/division-clinched-but-still-work-to-do.html
The Midwest Division is locked up. The Kitchener Rangers captured the Joe Holody Trophy for the third time in franchise history in Tuesday's 5-2 win against the Sarnia Sting. That means the Blueshirts are guaranteed the second seed in the Ontario Hockey League's Western Conference and will face the seventh...<p><a class="asset-img-link" href="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01b8d2e0f106970c-pi"><img alt="Rangers practice 1" class="asset asset-image at-xid-6a00d8341c465d53ef01b8d2e0f106970c img-responsive" src="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01b8d2e0f106970c-500wi" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Rangers practice 1" /></a><br />The Midwest Division is locked up.</p>
<p>The Kitchener Rangers captured the Joe Holody Trophy for the third time in franchise history in Tuesday&#39;s 5-2 win against the Sarnia Sting.</p>
<p>That means the Blueshirts are guaranteed the second seed in the Ontario Hockey League&#39;s Western Conference and will face the seventh ranked club, which, at this point, can still be Owen Sound, Guelph, Saginaw or Windsor.</p>
<p>But, even though Kitchener&#39;s fate is sealed, there is still a big to-do list with five games to go in the regular season.</p>
<p>And the pre-playoffs checklist starts Friday when the Rangers host the Canadian Hockey League best Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8317809-division-clinched-but-rangers-still-have-work-to-do/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Full story</a></p>TheRecord2018-03-09T00:23:00-05:00Rangers clinch Midwest Divisionhttp://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/rangers-clinch-midwest-division.html
Make some room in the rafters at the Aud. The Kitchener Rangers will be adding a new banner to the rink after clinching the Ontario Hockey League's Midwest Division with a 5-2 win over the Sarnia Sting Tuesday night. It's the third Joe Holody Trophy for the franchise but first...<p><a class="asset-img-link" href="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01b8d2e07073970c-pi"><img alt="Rangers-Sarnia 1" class="asset asset-image at-xid-6a00d8341c465d53ef01b8d2e07073970c img-responsive" src="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01b8d2e07073970c-500wi" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Rangers-Sarnia 1" /></a><br />Make some room in the rafters at the Aud.</p>
<p>The Kitchener Rangers will be adding a new banner to the rink after clinching the Ontario Hockey League&#39;s Midwest Division with a 5-2 win over the Sarnia Sting Tuesday night.</p>
<p>It&#39;s the third Joe Holody Trophy for the franchise but first in the past decade. The team also won five Emms Trophies before league realignment 20 years ago.</p>
<p>&quot;They earned it,&quot; said Blueshirts bench boss Jay McKee. &quot;I&#39;m proud of the way they&#39;ve worked over the course of the season and that&#39;s a nice thing they&#39;ve achieved for themselves but there is a lot of hard work ahead.&quot;</p>
<p>But the emotionally charged game may have some consequences.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8312907-rangers-clinch-ohl-s-midwest-division/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Full story</a></p>TheRecord2018-03-07T08:21:26-05:00Kitchener 5, Sarnia 2http://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/sarnia-at-kitchener.html
PREGAME Rangers: 41-19-2-0, second in western conference Sting: 43-15-4-1, third in western conference (second most points) Head to head: Kitchener leads 2-0 Game-time: 7 p.m. The skinny: Kitchener is coming off two uneven games - a loss at home to Oshawa and a last minute comeback win over Guelph. Before...<p><strong>PREGAME</strong></p>
<p><strong>Rangers:</strong> 41-19-2-0, second in western conference</p>
<p><strong>Sting:</strong> 43-15-4-1, third in western conference (second most points)</p>
<p><strong>Head to head:</strong> Kitchener leads 2-0</p>
<p><strong>Game-time:</strong> 7 p.m.</p>
<p><strong>The skinny:</strong> Kitchener is coming off two uneven games - a loss at home to Oshawa and a last minute comeback win over Guelph. Before that, the Rangers doubled Sarnia 6-3 in one of their best games this season. The Sting responded to that loss by taking the CHL best Soo Greyhounds to a shootout (but lost) before rallying to beat Owen Sound in overtime. These two teams seem to be on a collision course in the playoffs.</p>
<p><strong>Keep an eye on:</strong> Rangers F Logan Brown is expected to return after sitting out a game to rest a lingering injury. The first line centre has five points in two games against the Sting this season.</p>
<p><strong>Additional reading:</strong> <a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8300102-rangers-on-brink-of-first-division-crown-in-a-decade/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Rangers on verge of clinching division</a></p>
<p><strong>Kitchener:</strong></p>
<p>Givani Smith-Rickard Hugg-Kole Sherwood<br /> Connor Bunnaman-Joseph Garreffa-Adam Mascherin<br /> Nick McHugh-Greg Meireles-Adam Liska<br /> X-Michael Petizian-Jonathan Yantsis</p>
<p>Connor Hall-Logan Stanley<br /> Giovanni Vallati-Austin McEneny<br /> Michael Vukojevic-Kyle Gentles<br /> Jack York</p>
<p>Mario Culina (14-9-2-0) starts<br /><br /><strong>Sarnia:</strong></p>
<p>Jonathan Ang-Franco Sproviero-Jordan Kyrou<br />Michael Pezzetta-Drake Rymsha-Sean Josling<br />Hugo Leufvenius-Adam Ruzicka-Anthony Salinitri<br />Jordan Ernst-Jamieson Rees-Brayden Guy<br /><br />Kelton Hatcher-Theo Calvas<br />Cam Dineen-Mitch Eliot<br />Connor Schlichting-Nick Grima<br /><br />Justin Fazio (34-10-3-0) starts.</p>
<p><a href="http://ontariohockeyleague.com/gamecentre/23004/boxscore" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Game summary</a></p>
<p><strong>Brownie points:</strong></p>
<p>- A win tonight clinches the Midwest Division for the first time since 2008.<br /><br />- Logan Brown is still banged up and sat out to rest a nagging injury. The team is hoping to get him back in the lineup before the playoffs begin. F Riley Damiani is getting close to returning. He&#39;s back skating after dealing with an illness for the past week. Eric Guest has been scratched for being late to practice.</p>
<p>- Three breakaways in the first for the Rangers – including an Adam Mascherin penalty shot – but nothing got by Sarnia keeper Justin Fazio on them.<br /> <br /> - The refs were ushered off the ice to a loud chorus boos from the fans in the first period after Mascherin went down in the corner with no penalty to the Sting. Michael Vukojevic then picked one up for cross checking for standing up for a downed teammate.<br /> <br /> - One plus (among many): Rangers G Mario Culina was in the zone. He made 27 saves and was seeing the puck well tonight.<br /> <br /> - One minus: Expect Givani Smith to get a suspension for shoving linesman Dustin McCrank in the last minute of the second period. Things that may help Smith&#39;s case – he didn’t try to hurt McCrank, the linesman was getting in the middle of a fight and may have slipped a bit on the play. But contact is contact and, under the rules, it carries a minimum 10-game suspension.</p>
<p>- Connor Bunnaman now has goals in six consecutive games.<br /> <br /> - Kitchener has yet to lose to Sarnia in three tries this season.<br /> <br /> - One thing is for certain, if these two clubs clash in the second round of the playoffs it’s going to be one heckuva series. Every game has had a real physical element to it so far.<br /> <br /> - The Rangers have to be happy with the sustained attack tonight. Shots read 14-16-17.<br /> <br /> - D Connor Hall was back in the lineup after a one game absence and was a cool plus-five.<br /> <br /> <strong>JB’s top three Rangers:</strong> Rickard Hugg, Adam Liska, Nick McHugh</p>TheRecord2018-03-06T08:28:11-05:00Division title loomshttp://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/division-title-looms.html
It was a season full of achievements. So you can forgive Matt Pepe if his memory of winning the Ontario Hockey League's Midwest Division in 2007-08 is a bit foggy. "You definitely want to wrap that up," said the former Kitchener Rangers captain. "That's a great accolade but what I...<p><a class="asset-img-link" href="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01b8d2e02804970c-pi" style="float: right;"><img alt="Hi_j0188(2)" class="asset asset-image at-xid-6a00d8341c465d53ef01b8d2e02804970c img-responsive" src="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01b8d2e02804970c-320wi" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px 5px;" title="Hi_j0188(2)" /></a>It was a season full of achievements.</p>
<p>So you can forgive Matt Pepe if his memory of winning the Ontario Hockey League&#39;s Midwest Division in 2007-08 is a bit foggy.</p>
<p>&quot;You definitely want to wrap that up,&quot; said the former Kitchener Rangers captain. &quot;That&#39;s a great accolade but what I remember from that year is the excitement of having the Memorial Cup at home.&quot;</p>
<p>Hosting the Canadian Hockey League&#39;s premier event — and earning an automatic berth into the four-team tournament — dwarfed everything else.</p>
<p>&quot;Our goal through the year was focused on that,&quot; said Pepe.</p>
<p>Still, it&#39;s hard to ignore the run.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8300102-rangers-on-brink-of-first-division-crown-in-a-decade/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Full story</a></p>TheRecord2018-03-06T08:13:27-05:00Joey G is strikes againhttp://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/joey-g-is-strikes-again.html
They call him Joey G. But Kitchener Rangers forward/defenceman Joseph Garreffa might have a new nickname in the pipeline. "Joe is Johnny OT for us right now," said Blueshirts bench boss Jay McKee. The pint-sized player capped a dramatic 5-4 come from behind victory in overtime against the Guelph Storm...<p><a class="asset-img-link" href="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01bb09f8d33b970d-pi" style="float: right;"><img alt="10FEB17RangersA0414" class="asset asset-image at-xid-6a00d8341c465d53ef01bb09f8d33b970d img-responsive" src="http://therecord.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341c465d53ef01bb09f8d33b970d-320wi" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px 5px;" title="10FEB17RangersA0414" /></a>They call him Joey G.</p>
<p>But Kitchener Rangers forward/defenceman Joseph Garreffa might have a new nickname in the pipeline.</p>
<p>&quot;Joe is Johnny OT for us right now,&quot; said Blueshirts bench boss Jay McKee.</p>
<p>The pint-sized player capped a dramatic 5-4 come from behind victory in overtime against the Guelph Storm Sunday afternoon at the Sleeman Centre to get the Rangers back on the winning track.</p>
<p>It was the second time in the past 10 days that Garreffa converted in extra time.</p>
<p>&quot;He just has that ability to beat guys with either moves or his speed,&quot; said McKee, whose team split the weekend after losing 3-2 to Oshawa Friday at home. &quot;He&#39;s real smart.&quot;</p>
<p>The Rangers had no business reaching overtime.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8297700-kitchener-rangers-rally-to-snag-ot-win-from-guelph-storm/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Full story</a></p>
<p>***</p>
<p>I&#39;ve received several emails/Tweets about Brown and Hall so I thought I&#39;d expand a bit for those wondering what&#39;s going on.</p>
<p>Both sat out Sunday&#39;s game in Guelph to rest.</p>
<p>There is nothing sneaky behind the move.</p>
<p>Brown is banged up and hasn&#39;t been taking faceoffs lately. He could have played Sunday but the team wanted to give him a day off. I was told he&#39;s &quot;100 per cent&quot; for Tuesday&#39;s tilt against Sarnia, assuming nothing new pops up between now and then. I asked coach Jay McKee outright if it had anything to do with Friday&#39;s benching and he said no and that they have moved past that.<br /><br />Hall missed eight games with a shoulder injury. He&#39;ll need off-season surgery. He was in Guelph and looked fine. The team felt a day of rest would do him some good after coming back from the time off. They have done this with other players returning from injury in the past.</p>TheRecord2018-03-05T08:41:14-05:00Kitchener 5, Guelph 4 (OT)http://therecord.blogs.com/rangers_report/2018/03/pregame-rangers-40-19-2-0-second-in-western-conference-storm-28-25-4-4-sixth-in-western-conference-head-to-head-kitch.html
PREGAME Rangers: 40-19-2-0, second in western conference Storm: 28-25-4-4, sixth in western conference Head to head: Kitchener leads 4-1. Game-time: 2 p.m. The skinny: It was s February to forget for the Guelph Storm who went 3-6-2-1. The Storm snapped an eight game losing skid last night with a convincing...<p><strong>PREGAME</strong></p>
<p><strong>Rangers:</strong> 40-19-2-0, second in western conference</p>
<p><strong>Storm:</strong> 28-25-4-4, sixth in western conference</p>
<p><strong>Head to head:</strong> Kitchener leads 4-1.</p>
<p><strong>Game-time:</strong> 2 p.m.</p>
<p><strong>The skinny:</strong> It was s February to forget for the Guelph Storm who went 3-6-2-1. The Storm snapped an eight game losing skid last night with a convincing 8-3 win over Owen Sound. Kitchener looked playoff ready in Tuesday’s win over Sarnia but followed that up with an uninspiring effort in a loss to Oshawa Friday.</p>
<p><strong>Keep an eye on:</strong> Rangers captain Connor Bunnaman scored his 25<sup>th</sup> of the season Friday and has goals in four consecutive games. He always seems to save his best for his hometown Storm.</p>
<p><strong>Additional reading:</strong> <a href="https://www.therecord.com/sports-story/8295776-rangers-coach-cracking-down-on-tardy-players/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Brown benched for being late</a></p>
<p><strong>Kitchener:</strong></p>
<p>Givani Smith-Greg Meireles-Kole Sherwood<br /> Connor Bunnaman-Joseph Garreffa-Adam Mascherin<br /> Adam Liska-Rickard Hugg-Jonathan Yantsis<br /> Michael Petizian-Eric Guest-Nick McHugh</p>
<p>Michael Vukojevic-Logan Stanley<br /> Kyle Gentles-Austin McEneny<br /> Giovanni Vallati-Jack York</p>
<p>Luke Richardson (21-11-1-0) starts.</p>
<p><strong>Guelph:</strong></p>
<p>Isaac Ratcliffe-Nate Schnarr-Alexey Toropchenko<br />James McEwan-Laim Hawel-Zach Poirier<br />Keegan Stevenson-Barret Kirwin-Cedric Ralkph<br />Mason Primeau-X-X<br /><br />Dmitri Samorukov-Ryan Merkley<br />Garrett McFadden-Mark Shoemaker<br />Mark Woolley-Owen Lalonde<br /><br />Anthony Popovich (27-18-3-3) starts.</p>
<p><a href="http://ontariohockeyleague.com/gamecentre/22996/boxscore" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Game summary</a></p>
<p><strong>Brownie points:<br /></strong></p>
<p>- This was Givani Smith&#39;s first game against his old club. Guelph sent Smith to Kitchener at the OHL trade deadline in early January for three second round draft picks.<br /><br />- Three of Kitchener&#39;s final seven games are against the Storm.<br /><br />- Logan Brown sat this one out. He has been nursing a nagging injury and gets a day to rest. I&#39;m told it&#39;s why he hasn&#39;t been taking faceoffs of late. D Connor Hall also got a rest day. Riley Damiani is sick.<br /><br />- In 2015 the Storm sent defencemen Ben Harpur and Chadd Bauman to Barrie. The Colts got half a season and playoffs out of both d-men. In the end, Guelph got 2.5 seasons from Givani Smith, 1.5 seasons from C.J. Garcia, six second round draft picks, a fourth, fifth and a 10th. Now that&#39;s a haul.</p>
<p>- A nice first period hit by Jack York who sent Guelph captain Garrett McFadden into the Rangers bench. York looked good in his first game back after missing the past three while ill.<br /> <br /> - Rangers F Jonathan Yantsis took a checking to the head major in the first and was tossed from the game. I don’t think it was malicious (and maybe even a bit borderline to the head) but the refs are calling anything close to the noggin, as they should.<br /> <br /> - Goalie Luke Richardson was the main reason Kitchener had a clean sheet after one. But his teammates didn’t do him any favours by taking three straight penalties to end the first period. Guelph had a five-on-three for 2:10.<br /> <br /> - Pretty passing on both Rangers second period goals. All three forwards on the Bunnaman-Garreffa-Mascherin touched the puck before the latter scored his 37<sup>th</sup> while Sherwood and Stanley teamed up on a two-on-one for theirs.<br /><br />- Still catching my breath after that finish. Kitchener gave up three third period markers and trailed 4-2 when they yanked the goalie and scored twice to tie it up with an extra attacker. Then it was Mascherin to Garreffa on a two-on-one break in OT for the winner.<br /><br />- That&#39;s Garreffa&#39;s second straight OT winner as he capped a 3-2 victory over Sudbury 10 days back.<br /><br />- This isn&#39;t exclusive to Guelph. And I know I should just let it go. But could the grown men screaming crap toward teenage players give it a rest? It was nonstop throughout the game from the stands at the Sleeman Centre. &quot;I can&#39;t wait to hear some blowhard yell insults at the hockey game&quot; is a phrase no one going to the game says to themselves.<br /> <br /> <strong>JB’s top three Rangers: </strong>Adam Mascherin, Joseph Garreffa, Luke Richardson</p>TheRecord2018-03-04T08:49:43-05:00